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Question on gender choice and intergration of new pet.

Hi,
I'm new to this site and quite frankly I'm new to the whole Savannah experience. I don't mind saying it has been quite the experience thus far.

I have a female that is somewhere between 2 1/2-3yrs old. I was told by breeders, with whom I've interacted online, that she is either an F6 or F7.

I bought her from a woman that didnt have official papers on her so I'm not certain. I didn't know much about the breed when I got her 6 months ago. I simply wanted an indoor cat, with a interesting look and lively personality. Well I definitely got that. LOL

I hadn't owned a pet for over a decade and was not prepared for the ball-fetching, chatterbox that is ALWAYS in my business and makes no bones about it. As I write this posting, she is over my shoulder screaming in my ear and I wouldn't trade her for the world. She's awesome and I love her. So much so that I want to bring in one more as a companion for her. I believe she would be more content to have a playmate when I do go to work and even when I'm home. I've been home for three weeks due to surgery and even though she's had most of my attention it doesn't seem enough. Not to mention she's too smart for alot of her toys and gets bored easily. ;-)

After reading alot of material on how to intergrate a new cat/kitten into my home the only thing that I'm sure of is that the new cat should be younger to make the process go smoother. Other than that the conflicting information about which gender to choose and the introduction process when living in an apartment setting is all over the place. I definitely have room for two cats. i live alone in a 2 bedroom apartment. But, it's still not a house with a spare rooms to acclimate them for two weeks. Not to mention it's just me. Dividing my time so both get what they need in two different parts of an apartment is going to get tricky.

I would greatly appreciate any advice or tips on these two matters that I can get. Sorry for the long message. I am simply happy that there is a site dedicated to this breed and I may finally gets some useful information to make the right choices for both Nikita and myself.

Welcome! You've found a great resource. I'm sure you will get lots of good advice and opinions from the members here. I m still waiting for my first SV to be released from his breeder- this week i hope

PERSONALLY, from the outset, I would look for a neutered male. If you absolutely fall in love with another girl, you will probably be fine since they both would be spayed, but initially I would keep an eye out for a boy.

Second- quarantine is all about you and your cats- both of them. The quarantine gives you time to get kitty to the vet, checked out, gives you the time to watch the poop and pee and make sure everything is looking good, and gives you the time to bond with that kitty before that kitty bonds with your other kitty. Now, I know- you want the two kitties to bond, BUT trust me- you want to be bonded to said new kitty before new kitty bonds with your other SV. Otherwise, you will be just the food provider and the other kitty will be your new kitty's best bud- center of its universe. Taking that time during quarantine to bond is just extra special and I think creates an extra special bond. (Now- this can happen without quarantine, but trust me- you want to do it).

Quarantine is such a very short time- you can use your master bedroom, your bathroom or another bedroom.

I completely agree with Trish after NOT listening to my breeder...I kept Zuri in quarantine for all of two days...and then as Trish said, she bonded with Taj (SV) and Cisco (DSH) and I was the odd woman out...things have now changed and all is well, but even if you quarantined for a week, it would be better than 2 days...

I completely agree with Trish after NOT listening to my breeder...I kept Zuri in quarantine for all of two days...and then as Trish said, she bonded with Taj (SV) and Cisco (DSH) and I was the odd woman out...things have now changed and all is well, but even if you quarantined for a week, it would be better than 2 days...

Click to expand...

I did the same with Ava- and then she bonded totally to Simon and I was ignored for the first few months... Now- she's one of my big babies, but I think it would have been different if I hadn't let her bond to Simon first!

Welcome! You've found a great resource. I'm sure you will get lots of good advice and opinions from the members here. I m still waiting for my first SV to be released from his breeder- this week i hope

Welcome! Your girl is very pretty. I agree with the others about the quarantine. It is a very important thing to do, not only for the health of both cats, but also to make sure the bond with you is there first. Happy hunting!

Honestly, the quarantine (from my dog) will be REALLY hard for me I know. I totally get the whole idea behind it, for health and bonding reasons, but we've waited so long for him already and one of the reasons we decided on a SV was for companionship to our sweet Allie. Our DSH of 18yrs passed about 9 months ago and we all miss her so much. We are getting a neutered male and have never had a male pet before so that will be diff too.